Tuesday, January 27, 2009

You never know what you will find


This photograph is further proof that you never know what you are going to find at University Archives and Records Program. Pictured here is Mrs. C.H. Ray of Elizabethtown, KY. She is posing with her winning entry in the national "Fowl Fashion" competition. The competition, sponsored by the Poultry & Egg National Board, was one "in which the feathered folk strut their stuff in costumes their ingenious owners had created for them from poultry feed bag material," according to Jane Watson former publicity director of the Poultry & Egg National Board. Although the date of the photo is unknown there is something about a "fowl fashion" competition that is perhaps timeless.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

How the times can change


We at Special Collections were a little concerned when we came across this photograph while processing an agriculture collection. It depicts "war-famed DDT bug bomb for civilians." Published in 1962 Silent Spring, by American biologist Rachel Carson, warned of the environmental and human health concerns associated with the indiscriminate spraying DDT. The book suggested that DDT and other pesticides potentially caused cancer and were detrimental to wildlife. The particular canister in this photograph "is said to contain enough insecticide to debug several average-size homes." Perhaps a case of overkill?


Thursday, January 15, 2009

New Online Resource


Search or browse University of Kentucky Yearbooks!

Explore thousands of historic images!

Discover the Board of Trustees Minutes!

see for yourself at

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Happy Birthday Elvis

So, perhaps this is a stretch - even for me. Nonetheless, Happy Birthday Elvis! In honor of the Elvis Sandwich (fried bread, peanut butter, BANANAS, and some say bacon) we post this photo of women buying bananas from Phil "the fruit man" Pearling's banana cart. This cart was an early campus vending operation, circa 1880s.